The present invention relates to an infant sleeper, cradle, crib or the like.
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a medical condition in which a new born suffocates because he or she literally "forgets" to breathe. The nervous systems of new-borns are often not sufficiently developed to deal with the stress associated with breathing.
The causes of sudden infant death syndrome are not fully known. However, it is known that sudden infant death syndrome occurs most often when the infant is asleep. Further, studies have shown that SIDS most often occurs while the infant is sleeping on his or her stomach. These studies suggest that instances of SIDS might be reduced, perhaps by as much as one half, by preventing the infant from sleeping on his or her stomach.
Infant sleepers are well known in the art. Such infant sleepers often take the shape of a crib, bassinet or the like such as shown in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 274,467, 279,134, 2,401,605, 2,475,775, 3,383,718 and 3,466,678. These types of cribs typically have a raised side wall at the head of the bed that drops away at least part way going toward the foot of the bed. They do not raise the head of the infant at all.
It is reasonable to assume that an infant sleeper needs to create a warm, secure place for an infant to sleep, as well as to allow others, such as the child's parents, to easily access the infant. The goals of security and easy access conflict. However, this conflict has not traditionally been resolved by including considerations of the much more serious importance of minimizing the possibility of sudden infant death syndrome.
One of the common infant sleepers in use is the so-called bassinet configuration. This sleeper encloses the infant in what is essentially a crib. The sides of the bassinet are generally at least partially transparent so as to allow the infant to be viewed while sleeping. The walls of the sleeper are made high enough to keep the infant secure. It is also important that the walls be made low enough to permit easy access to the infant. This objective can be achieved by creating a lowered portion at the infant's foot to allow for easier access.
The design of an infant sleeper also has a psychological effect on the infant. It is known that an infant may be reluctant to sleep in a crib that is too small or perceived to be too confining. Shallow walls seem to provide a more pleasing psychological sleeping space. However, shallow walls may allow an infant to fall out of the sleeper. The possibility of an infant falling out quickly becomes more pronounced as the infant grows.
There is a need in the art for an infant sleeper that creates a warm, secure sleeping space for the infant while also providing a safe, secure and psychologically pleasing space for the infant. There is a need in the art for an infant sleeper that relieves stress on the infants's neck, shoulder and arm without restricting the infant's natural movements. And there is a need in the art for an infant sleeper that provides both easy access to the infant and a secure sleeping space while also accounting for the potentially profound effects that posture can have on the infant's ability to breathe.
These and other objectives are achieved with an infant sleeper that is designed to hold the infant in a horizontal surface inside the raised wall portions. The head of the infant can come to rest on a portion of the bed that can be made open through the lack of the raised wall portions. The raised wall portions secure the infant in place. The infant can be further secured to the bed using one or more straps, optionally covered with a fastening material, for example, VELCRO.RTM., that is positioned to come over the infant's mid-section.
The raised wall portions can correspond approximately to the center of mass of the infant so as to provide maximum retention support and security to the infant. The raised wall portions, in combination with the horizontal surface, secures the infant to the bed. The retention straps supplement this restraint. Also, the portion of the bed that lacks the raised wall portion provides as little obstruction as possible to the head of the infant so as to reduce potential feelings of claustrophobia. Hence, the present invention combines a secure place for an infant to sleep with a sense of openness and freedom.
More particularly, the present invention comprises an infant sleeper having a contour trough having a head end and a foot end, two parallel raised side walls, each raised side wall having a front end, a mid section and a back end, the raised side walls contacting the contour trough and having a height sufficient to prevent the infant from readily rolling over, a horizontal surface extending a first distance between each raised side surfaces and a second distance between the head end and back end of the contour trough, the dimensions of the first distance being slightly greater than the lateral dimensions of an infant, and the second distance being greater than the length of an infant. The present invention can also advantageously include each raised side wall having a tapered portion extending forward from the mid section toward the head end and progressively lowering toward the head end such that each back end of each side wall is higher in elevation than each front end, and the horizontal surface can have a curvature that is negative between the raised side walls.
All of the foregoing objectives, features and advantages of the present invention, and more, are explained below with the aid of the following illustrative figures and exemplary embodiments.